


Nothing Short of Perfect

by Tangled23



Category: Arrow (TV 2012)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-31
Updated: 2018-07-24
Packaged: 2019-05-16 11:43:55
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 19,181
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14810714
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tangled23/pseuds/Tangled23
Summary: Five years ago Felicity Smoak had to pay for all of her mistakes, sacrificing the one thing that she treasured most in life.Five years ago Oliver Queen learned that he was a father, a fact that forced him to grow up and stop being an entitled brat.Now he is the successful CEO of Queen Consolidated and she is a woman focused on setting things right.





	1. In which there is a tresspasser in The Dungeon

**Author's Note:**

> I'm way more nervous about this than I thought I would be. If you decide to give this fic a chance, please keep in mind that all your questions will be answered and that these characters are just as flawed as the rest of us.

Felicity Smoak hadn’t felt happy in a very long time. The feeling was foreign to her now. She wasn’t sad or depressed. She was content and proud of the life that she had built. And that was okay. Happiness was kind of a myth or an unrealistic expectation anyway. It was so much better to find pleasure in small things, like having a Dr Who marathon and a Big Belly burger with your best friend, than to aim for something unattainable.

 

Felicity Smoak however was a woman with a mission. And that mission had brought her right here in this building. Finally, after all this planning and scheming and worrying, she was one step closer to reaching her goals. Shaking her head, she took a sip of her coffee and forced her scattered brain to focus. Thinking about the past would not do her any favors anyway. And until someone actually invents the TARDIS, it would be best for people to stop worrying about things they cannot change and plan for the future instead.

 

The elevator beeped, signaling that she had reached the basement. Entering her small and dark office at Queen Consolidated, she placed her hot latte on the desk and watered the fern. Ferns were the only plants that could survive the inhospitable environment of the IT department, aka The Dungeon. The Dungeon might be ideal for ferns and computer servers that tended to overheat but it was not great for people. Maybe that was the reason why everyone was always in such a bad mood. Her boss for instance, a middle aged man, named Ernie was not her biggest fan. Ernie had taken issue with Felicity from day one for two reasons; first of all, she was way smarter than him and second, she had refused to date him. Being blonde, young, pretty and on top of it good with computers was not a good combination in Ernie’s book. His tiny brain could not comprehend how such a thing was possible.

 

There was a time when Felicity would have hacked Ernie and donated all his savings to Greenpeace just on principle. These days she didn’t engage in dangerous activities. The biggest thrill of her life was Netflix and she had a loving relationship with mint chocolate chip ice-cream. Some days when she was feeling really adventurous she would get drunk on red wine and sing karaoke with Maggie, her best friend.

 

Maggie Jones was the reason that Felicity had managed to find work in QC in the first place. Last year Maggie had gotten married to none other than Tommy Merlyn. The heir of Merlyn Global had fallen so fast for Maggie that he hadn’t known what hit him. Gossip magazines had believed that Tommy would remain a bachelor forever but he had surprised them all by sweeping Maggie off her feet and proposing within two months. Mrs Jones-Merlyn, since Maggie was the daughter of two Greek immigrants and had no intention of giving up her maiden name, was Felicity’s friend, confidant and savior.

 

When Felicity had left Las Vegas behind feeling broken and alone, she had never dreamed that she would one day have someone like that fighting in her corner. Maggie had helped her pick up the pieces and when given the chance, she hadn’t hesitated to ask Tommy to inform Walter Steele that there was a very intelligent but broke MIT graduate who needed a better - not to mention more suitable to her qualifications - job. At the time, Felicity had been working in a dog grooming salon and had no idea that Tommy had gotten into so much trouble for her. As a result, when she had received a phone call from QC, she had been so surprised that she had dropped her cup of coffee on her lap, burning her thighs.

 

However, she had found a reasonable explanation for Mr Steele’s sudden interest in her rather easily. After all, she had sent her resume numerous times at QC for the past five years and she had been desperate to get a job there.

 

“You know,” Maggie had asked one time while they were hanging out, watching Game of Thrones in Felicity’s apartment, “you never said why it has to be QC specifically. Merlyn Global would snatch you in a second. Tommy thinks you’re a genius.”

 

“I am a genius,” Felicity joked but her friend didn’t look amused. “It has to be QC, Maggie. You know that.”

 

“Yes. But I don’t know why.”

 

But Felicity had easily distracted her friend with questions about Tommy and their exciting lovelife, thus successfully avoiding that minefield. It was not that she didn’t trust Maggie. To be honest, she trusted her with her life. No, the problem was that nothing ever good had come out of Felicity’s past. So now she preferred to think only about the future.

 

God, it almost seemed too good to be true. After all this time, her plan had worked. She was finally here, so close to Oliver Queen that she could almost smell him. An intense feeling, so acute that it was almost pain burst through her, burning her lungs.

  


* * *

  


Oliver Queen, co-CEO of Queen Consolidated, heir to a Fortune 500 company and son of Starling royalty was not having a good day. For one, he was late for a very important teleconference with the CEO of Palmer technologies, Ray Palmer. Mr Palmer was not so fond of Oliver because of his reputation as a brainless trust fund baby and his philandering ways. But Palmer respected Walter so much that he had decided to give QC a chance to work together on his cogeneration project. Oliver’s tendency to be late for meetings and his inability to understand all the scientific stuff did not do QC any favors. The one thing that Oliver had in abundance that Ray lacked was good instincts. Oliver was born a leader and he always recognized talent and opportunity. Palmer was the one that kept out of touch for days because he got lost into his projects; Oliver was the one that people trusted enough to approach with questions and ideas, the one that took advantage of every chance to promote this project and ultimately, the one that thought strategically, calculating risks and making QC the number one company in the Eastern seaboard. And while QC would profit immensely from Ray’s scientific vision, Palmer Tech would also benefit from Oliver’s leadership.

But Oliver was not just the leader of the company and the spoiled son of Moira Queen and the deceased Robert Queen; he was also a father. His daughter was the number one priority in his life. He would do anything for her, sacrifice QC and all the current projects if he had to. Elizabeth Queen took precedence over everything else and thank God, Walter and Moira both agreed on that.

 

That morning, Elizabeth had been particularly difficult. She had woken up cranky and clingy. She had refused to eat breakfast and had thrown away a bowl when Raisa had tried to feed her making a huge mess in the kitchen.

 

Oliver knew that his daughter was willful and temperamental. She was his child after all. But Elizabeth was also scary smart and that made her a handful. Like her father, she did not respect authority and used her considerable intelligence to get into trouble as fast as possible. A number of psychologists had told Oliver that the child was simply craving attention and at first he had believed them. But no matter how much time he spent with her, nothing changed. She was still pushing boundaries and testing him. On her good days, Elizabeth could charm even a snake. On her bad days, she found new and exciting ways to make her nanny quit and hated everyone but Oliver.

 

So, even though he had a meeting scheduled with Ray Palmer, he still had to make up time for Elizabeth, driving her to QC and persuading her to stay at daycare while he worked. It was no easy feat but he had managed by promising to let her have ice-cream for dinner. Even her ice-cream choice was as unique as her.

 

Oliver smiled as he thought of his daughter’s love affair with mint chocolate chip and entered his office, only fifteen minutes late. His assistant, Mary had managed to stall the CEO of Palmer Tech enough for Oliver to arrive. With a nod and a grateful smile, he let her return to her office so that he could focus on the cogeneration project.

The meeting took over two hours and by the end of it, they had managed to agree on most of the terms. There was another meeting scheduled for the end of the week but he was confident that with the help of the Applied Sciences division, they would manage to finally begin constructing a machine or something similar that would be able to harness the excessive energy used by their building to produce more power. He didn’t understand even half of it. But Oliver had known business since the cradle and he was certain that this project would bring huge profits to his company while providing people with a more green and efficient solution for generating electricity.

 

He was about to head to the conference room for a cup of coffee when suddenly Mary burst through the door, looking frantic.

 

“Mr Queen!”

 

Oliver was on his feet before she could blink. “What is it? What’s wrong?”

 

“Mrs Williams from daycare called. Elizabeth is missing.”

  
  


* * *

  


Felicity returned to The Dungeon after her break. She had managed to grab another latte and a red velvet muffin from Jitters, a fact that made her feel hopeful for the rest of the day. It had not been easy so far. First of all, Ernie had taken great pleasure in assigning her the most asinine jobs and second, her feet were killing her from wearing the most beautiful pair of Manolo Blahnik yellow sandals she owned. The heels were the only shoes in her closet that looked good with her gray color-block fitted dress and dressing as a QC employer was not meant to be comfortable. She had to look the part even if she spent all her day buried in The Dungeon.

 

Felicity put her coffee and the delicious muffin on the desk and was about to remove the offensive shoes even if it was for a few minutes, when she heard a noise she didn’t recognize.

 

She looked around but didn’t see anything out of the ordinary. But there it was again. Beneath the constant hum of the computer servers, she could hear a faint rustling sound. Felicity approached the other side of the desk to investigate and noticed that her bottom drawer, the one where she kept all her stash of chocolate bars was open. She would never admit it willingly but she was kind of addicted to junk food.

 

The open drawer and the fact that her candy was missing was not the problem though. No, the problem was that underneath the desk there was a child hiding. Felicity found herself looking into the bluest eyes she had even seen.

 

“Hello,” she said carefully, trying not to scare her. But how could a little girl (because she was definitely a girl now that Felicity could see her better) be in Queen Consolidated and hiding in her office of all places?

 

The child didn’t reply. Instead she continued munching the candy calmly like a cute mouse. Actually, she was so calm that Felicity realized that she was quite familiar with the QC offices. That was good because it meant that her parents were somewhere inside the building and that she didn’t have to notify the police about a missing child.

 

The little tresspasser’s mouth was covered with chocolate and she had gotten through most of Felicity’s stuff. Apparently, she had been there for quite some time. Felicity tried a different tactic.

 

“Did you eat all of my Hershey’s milk chocolate?” she asked, sounding curious but non-threatening.

The little girl nodded.

 

“And my M&M’s?”

 

She nodded again, vigorously.

 

“What about my Skittles?”

 

She shook her head while making a face that implied she found Skittles disgusting.

 

“I can’t believe you don’t like Skittles,” Felicity said and sat on her comfortable rolling chair, pushing it backwards so as not to hit the child. She had to notify someone as soon as possible but she wanted to gain the girl’s trust first before asking questions about missing parents. “Do you mind if I eat my muffin and some Skittles now? My break will be over soon and I don’t want to get in trouble.”

 

The little girl nodded regally as if she was giving her permission to continue. Felicity snickered but managed to cover it. The child was skittish enough as it was. She didn’t want to offend her or scare her away before she could find out where she had come from.

 

Felicity didn’t speak for a while. They both ate their food silently. Felicity occasionally took a sip of her hot coffee, sighing in pleasure. Suddenly, she felt a hand on her knee.

 

“What is it? Are you finished?”

 

The girl nodded again.

 

“Hmm, should we clean your hands? I have wet wipes here somewhere.”

 

She opened all the drawers and managed to find some buried underneath a bunch of old batteries and cables. She cleaned the little girl’s hands thoroughly when she noticed that her new friend was trying to tell her something.

 

“Use your words, sweetie,” she encouraged. “I don’t know how to help you if you don’t tell me what you want.”

 

Her encouragement worked after a while. “Thirsty,” the girl confessed in a small voice.

 

“Well, that’s understandable. Chocolate might taste like heaven but it can make you quite thirsty. Promise to wait here for one minute while I get you a bottle of water?”

 

Felicity used the opportunity to grab two bottles of mineral water and to call Roy. Roy was one of the lobby guards and they had become instant friends bickering every morning when she arrived to work. He took great pleasure in calling her Blondie and she reciprocated by calling him Abercrombie since he looked like a model. Felicity informed Roy that she had found a rather shy trespasser in her office and he promised to find out who the girl was and to inform her parents as soon as possible.

 

She entered the office again, feeling inexplicably drawn to the child. Maybe because she reminded her of all she had lost. Either way she wanted to help and to make sure that she was returned to her parents. Felicity was sure that the girl’s mother would be frantic by now. The thought almost made her panic but she pushed it down and walked towards the desk.

 

“Are you ready to come out of your hiding place?” she asked gently.

 

Instead of answering, a little hand made a grabbing motion, obviously asking for the bottle of water.

 

Felicity tried again. “Listen, you know how I asked you to promise to stay put while I get you some water? Promises are very important and they must be kept. So now, I’m making you a promise. If you come out of there, I will give you the bottle and you can hang out with me until your family comes for you.”

 

“I can?”

 

“Yes, you can. Please, come out of there. You must be very thirsty.”

 

She considered it for a few moments. Then she emerged from beneath the desk like a small and cute fairy. She was one of the most beautiful children that Felicity had ever seen. Her blond hair was parted in the middle into two pigtails and she was wearing an adorable pink dress paired with a white cardigan and panda flats. Felicity’s eyes watered at the sight. Sometimes, she still felt the weight of all the mistakes she had made crushing her down.

 

“May I please have some water now?” the girl asked, sounding so polite that Felicity did a double take.

 

“You may,” she answered just as politely and handed her the bottle.

 

She drank almost half in one go. “Daddy did it. That thing that he shouldn’t.”

 

“What did your daddy do?” Felicity asked, narrowing her eyes. If she found out that someone had abused that sweet child, she would ruin them digitally.

 

“He broke a promise.” She gave the bottle back to Felicity and then frowned. “He said I can come to work with him today but he left me with the dragon lady.”

 

Finally they were getting somewhere. Confirming that her father was a QC employee made things easier. Roy could easily find his name and locate him. And Felicity was relieved that the girl was talking about broken promises and not other traumatic experiences.

 

“Does your father work here, baby?”

 

“I’m not a baby,” she replied indignantly. “I’m almost five!”

 

Felicity tried to hide her smile and failed. “I am sorry. But you see, you haven’t told me your name so I don’t know what to call you.”

 

“Oh,” she said, anger deflating. “I don’t want to say.”

 

“You don’t want to tell me your name?”

 

“No. Because you’ll make me go back to the dragon lady.”

 

Felicity chuckled. “Well, what if I tell you mine first?”

 

She shrugged as if she didn’t care.

 

“My name’s Felicity. And you are?”

 

She thought about it, obviously believing that this piece of information would get her in some sort of trouble. “Elizabeth,” she replied reluctantly, choosing to omit her last name just as Felicity had done.

 

“Pleased to meet you, Elizabeth. So what do you want to do until your father arrives? Should we play some games on my tablet? I can download anything you like.”

 

Elizabeth’s cheeks reddened and she looked embarrassed for some reason. “I’m not s’posed to. I already had chocolate. I don’t want Daddy to get really mad at me.”

 

“That’s smart Elizabeth. You broke one rule. It’s better if you don’t break another. Well, I was about to take a computer apart. Wanna help me?”

 

“I can help? Really?” she asked, eyes wide with surprise and pleasure.

 

“Sure. We can use my special tools.” Felicity retrieved the laptop from a shelf. It was brought to her by a friend and there was not much that could be done to save this poor baby so she had thought to use the extra parts as spares.

 

They spent the next half an hour working in silence. Actually, Felicity was working and Elizabeth was sitting on her desk, her little feet hanging, observing her every move and handing her screwdrivers or other tools. It didn’t take long for Felicity to realize that the child was - for lack of a better word - gifted. She didn’t talk much but the few questions she asked were way more clever than she had expected.

 

“F’lcity? It’s like a puzzle?”

 

“Yes, it’s like a puzzle that we have to undo. See, now we can keep the pieces that are still working and recycle the rest,” she explained.

 

The elevator dinged and suddenly there was such a commotion in the usually quiet basement that even Felicity looked up. And what she saw through the open door had her shaking in her ridiculously expensive sandals. Because there he was, Oliver Queen in all his glory. And he was approaching her office fast. Before she could process how or why he was there, his menacing voice shocked her to the core.

 

“Elizabeth Moira Queen!”

 

Felicity looked again at the little girl and stared deep into her blue eyes. No wonder she had felt so drawn to her. Elizabeth was her own daughter.

  
  



	2. In which Oliver Queen is an asshole

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for the kudos and comments! You gave me courage and you inspired me to write more.

Felicity Smoak had always been afraid of heights. People thought she was afraid of the concept of being elevated but that was not the truth. Or at least, it was not the only truth. It was more accurate to say that Felicity Smoak was afraid of falling.

 

All of her life she had been climbing to ridiculous heights and then she had been crumbling down. It was a vicious cycle of rude awakenings. The first fall had been her father. She had idolized that man for about seven years. Her mother was part of a different species. But Felicity and her father? They had been speaking the same language since she was a baby. So she had put him on a pedestal and she had done her best to climb up there with him. The disappointment and pain that followed his departure could only be compared with falling from an icy mountain top after first having been run through with a sword.

 

Then there had been Cooper. The first fall after her father’s abandonment had been bad enough. But what Cooper had done, had broken her in a million different ways. If being disappointed by her father was falling from a mountain, then being used by Cooper felt like being in an out-of-control airplane plummeting to earth. So for five years she had avoided heights like the plague and she had moved on. And honestly, she had never felt again the fear of looking down and the subsequent terror of the fall; not until the moment that she had looked into the beautiful blue eyes of her child.

 

 

* * *

  
  


Felicity couldn’t even look Oliver Queen in the eye. Part of her was certain that the moment their eyes met, he would recognize her and have her escorted out of the building. Granted, during their night together she had been a different person and he had been grieving, numbing the pain with booze and drugs. But there was still a chance that he would look into her eyes and realize who she was. She needn’t have worried. The man didn’t even register her presence in the room. He only had eyes for their daughter.

 

And if that wasn’t a punch in the gut, Felicity didn’t know what was. Her daughter, the best thing she had created in her entire life was now in front of her. She had touched her, she had cleaned her little hands… She had been close enough to hug her… She had smelled her wonderful clean smell… They had talked about computers for God’s sake! Felicity was so grateful that she had been face to face with the purest part of her that she wanted to laugh and cry at the same time. Was it just this morning that she had thought happiness was a myth? If she had only known then that happiness was as simple as sitting with a five-year-old and eating candy, she wouldn’t have been so arrogant.

 

How many times had she imagined this meeting? How many times had she thought about her baby girl? Too many to count. But in all of her imaginings, in all of her dreams Felicity couldn’t have pictured finding her beneath her desk like that. Although it was clear that Elizabeth was well taken care of, instinct warned Felicity that her daughter was not a happy child. And that was just unacceptable.

 

She watched Oliver while he approached their daughter carefully as if he hadn’t been yelling seconds before. What surprised Felicity was that for her part, Elizabeth was sitting on her desk, her little legs swinging back and forth, looking at her father apathetic. Any other child might have tried some sneaky way to earn forgiveness quickly. But not Elizabeth. She didn’t even attempt to look cute. Felicity might be currently shaking like a leaf but Elizabeth Moira Queen seemed to have already mastered the art of nonchalance. Channeling the supreme willpower and strength of Donna Smoak, Felicity managed to compose herself enough in order to pay attention.

 

“Elizabeth? Are you ok?” Oliver asked gently.

 

She nodded, her pigtails bouncing. Oliver hugged her and picked her up. It was obvious that he had no intention of putting her down.

 

“Why did you do that baby? You had me so worried…”

 

Before Elizabeth could answer, Felicity found herself jumping to her defense without considering that she would draw unwanted attention to herself.

 

“You broke your promise,” she announced.

 

Oliver flinched and then narrowed his eyes at her, noticing her for the first time.

 

“Excuse me?” he asked in a silky but menacing tone.

 

God, it was so unnerving to be staring into his clear blue eyes after all these years. Oliver Queen had a way of looking at you, with a laser-like focus that made it almost impossible to hide something. During their night together six years ago all that intensity had been absent. Now it was back with a vengeance and it could make grown men wither.

 

Felicity reminded herself that she was made from sterner stuff so she steeled her spine in the face of his disapproval and went on, “You left Elizabeth with some dragon woman.”

 

“What? Are you talking about Susan Williams?” He sounded incredulous.

 

Felicity looked at Elizabeth who nodded affirmatively from the safety of her father’s arms.

 

“Yes, the dragon lady,” she clarified.

 

Oliver didn’t even take a step forward but somehow he managed to look more threatening.

 

“And who are you?”

 

Felicity pushed her glasses up and introduced herself. “Felicity Smoak. And this is my office. Elizabeth was hiding here when I returned from my break.” It was with huge effort that she managed to withhold the epic babble that she could feel coming. She breathed deeply and evenly, using every technique known to man in order to calm herself. In a weird way she was both hoping and dreading that her name would jog his memory.

 

Again she needn’t have worried. Oliver was staring at her with a mixture of fear and anger. When you were the sole parent of five year old and you learned that your child had spent almost half an hour with a stranger it was bound to freak you out. Never mind that Felicity would rather cut her own fingers and never code again than hurt Elizabeth in any way. Oliver didn’t know that. Hence the hostility that was radiating from him in waves.

 

“You said that I broke my promise.”

 

“Hmm?”

 

“Ms Smoak, when I talked to my daughter you said that I broke my promise. What promise would that be?”

 

“Well, the promise that you’d spend the day with her. I think that’s why she was hiding in my office and eating my chocolate.”

 

For some reason, that was the straw that broke the camel’s back.

 

“You gave her chocolate?” he growled. “Did she eat anything with peanuts in it?”

 

“Whoa! Mr Queen, I’m sorry to interrupt your ‘grr’ for lack of a better word but please calm down.”

 

“Don’t tell me to calm down,” he threatened and Felicity knew for sure that if it wasn’t for the little girl in his arms he would have probably tried to intimidate her with his height. Ugh, men! Sometimes they were so predictable.

 

“Mr Queen,” she said louder this time, afraid that she had bombed the whole thing. After all this planning and all the trouble that Tommy and Maggie had gotten into to get her this job and her big mouth had already ruined it. “Please. You’ll scare her.”

 

He was about to reply, intending no doubt to make some scathing remark when the elevator dinged again and they were interrupted by a curious Roy Harper and a very worried Walter Steele.

 

 

* * *

 

“Oliver?”

 

His stepfather’s voice pulled Oliver out of the murderous rage he was feeling.

 

“Everything is fine Walter. Elizabeth was just a bit naughty.” In response, his daughter hid her face in his shoulder. The little faker!

 

“So I see. I take it you’ve met Ms Smoak.”

 

There was no appropriate reply to that comment so Oliver just nodded. Sometimes he felt like he was turning into Elizabeth.

 

Walter turned towards Felicity Smoak. His manners had always been impeccable.

 

“Thank you for your assistance Ms Smoak. We are grateful.”

 

“It was no trouble Mr Steele,” she replied blushing. “In fact, we had fun together.”

 

“Yeah, because you gave her chocolate,” Oliver muttered under his breath causing the guard who had accompanied Walter to look at him like he was a petulant child.

 

Walter probably didn’t hear because he approached him carefully in deference to his granddaughter. Everyone was always so cautious around Elizabeth. “Did you say something Oliver?”

 

“No, nothing.” Great, now both Walter and the annoying girl were thinking that he was a crazy man who mumbled.

 

“Let me take her, Oliver. I was planning on going home anyway. Your mother has invited the Bowens over for an early dinner.”

 

Elizabeth wrapped her arms around her father a little tighter which didn’t bode well for Walter’s plans. It had always been difficult for her to leave Oliver. And Walter was actually one of her favorite people. If it had been Moira trying to take her, they would have had a fight on their hands.

 

She didn’t speak but she had no trouble expressing her displeasure by screaming as loud as she could next to Oliver’s ear. Walter backed away, Roy Harper winced and Oliver started rubbing her back to calm her down. The only person who seemed unmoved by her shrill cries was the blonde.

 

“Maybe, it would be best if I-”

 

“No, Walter. It’s okay.” Oliver didn’t react to the screaming. Instead he waited patiently until she had calmed herself down. “Elizabeth,” he said, his tone leaving no room for argument, “you will go with grandpa Walter now. He will take you home and I will be back as soon as possible.”

 

Clearly Oliver’s word didn’t mean much to Elizabeth because she started screaming again, louder than before.

 

“Elizabeth.” Felicity Smoak interrupted his daughter’s performance by calling her name. Oliver was about to put her in her place for thinking she had any right to interfere when he noticed that Elizabeth had quieted down. “Remember when we talked about promises?”

 

His daughter gave a solemn nod and continued staring at the strange woman. With dread he realized that they have formed some sort of connection in the half hour that they had spent together.

 

“If you promise to be good for your grandfather and not to make him worry anymore, then perhaps your father can give you his word that he will be home by six today.”

 

All the men in the room had gotten utterly quiet. Both females were looking at him expectantly. This was wrong on so many levels but he couldn’t say no without creating bigger problems and breaking his daughter’s heart.

 

“Fine.” He looked at Elizabeth promising her silently that he would return home soon and gave her a kiss on the forehead. For a moment he felt her strong little arms hugging him tighter. Then surprisingly she let go and went into Walter’s arms willingly.

 

Damn it, was it so wrong that he was devastated that she had trusted some stranger more than she trusted him?

 

Walter spoke softly to Elizabeth and left with a grateful nod towards Felicity Smoak who was looking at the pair with a bizarre expression. As his stepfather and daughter were leaving there was something flashing in her eyes, something akin to pain.

 

The young guard didn’t follow.

 

“Do you need anything else Mr Queen?”

 

“No Roy, everything is under control.”

 

“What about you Blondie?”

 

She smiled for the first time since Oliver had entered her office. Was Harper her boyfriend or was she friendly to everyone except him?

 

“I’m fine Abercrombie. Thanks for asking.”

 

Harper smirked at that ridiculous nickname and walked towards the elevator leaving them alone.

  


* * *

 

 

“I don’t think we’ve been properly introduced,” he suddenly said, totally blindsiding her. He extended his right hand, “Oliver Queen.”

 

Felicity shook his hand automatically. For the life of her, she couldn’t figure out why he felt that introductions were suddenly necessary. “I know who you are. You are Mr Queen and the CEO of this company.”

 

“Co-CEO. And Mr Queen was my father. Please call me Oliver.”

 

Okay, now Felicity was seriously spooked. What the frack was going on?

 

“So what do you do for QC, Ms Smoak?”

 

“I’m your resident IT girl. Well not your _girl,_ girl. I meant your girl. I know it’s the same word but it means something completely different in my head.”

 

Oliver Queen did not look amused. “How long have you been working for us Ms Smoak?”

 

“Less than six months I think.”

 

He started prowling around her office observing everything. He raised an eyebrow at the fern but didn’t comment.

 

“And are you happy with your current position?”

 

Felicity folded her arms. She did not like this interrogation one bit.

 

“I’m very happy,” she lied. She was happy she was so close to her baby and she was ecstatic that she had finally seen her in person but she was definitely not happy with her job. Truth be told, Felicity was overqualified for this position. Nevertheless, she needed it and she had a feeling that Oliver Queen knew that. In the business world, there were whispers about him. People said that he was a fair and just leader but that he was also a master strategist who thought about others as threats, assets or targets. Right now Felicity was afraid that she belonged in the first category.

 

“What did you and my daughter talk about, Ms Smoak?”

 

“About promises mostly. And she seemed to be very interested in my work. Elizabeth is a smart little girl, Mr Queen. Anyway, other than that we didn’t speak much.”

 

“And you meeting my daughter was a coincidence?”

 

Felicity wanted to tell him that the answer was way too complicated. Instead, she couldn’t resist and quoted Leroy Jethro Gibbs, “Rule 39. There is no such thing as coincidence.”

 

Oliver Queen didn't react to that piece of wisdom. Instead he put his hands in his pockets and tried to appear as relaxed as possible. Felicity knew that he was anything but. Oliver Queen might fool others but he couldn’t fool her. During their night together she had told him that his eyes spoke the truth no matter what his mouth said. And his eyes were telling her that he was seriously pissed right now.

 

“Listen, Mr Queen,” she refused to call him Oliver on purpose, “I didn’t try to turn Elizabeth against you. I didn’t try to influence her in any way. And I definitely didn’t give her any candy with peanuts in it. Feeling better now?”

 

“No, Ms Smoak. I can assure you that I’m not feeling better.” He took a few steps towards her. His hands were out of his pockets and he was rubbing his thumb and index finger together, a clear sign that he was agitated. “I’m not happy that my daughter ran away from daycare. I’m not happy that she spent half an hour with a complete stranger eating junk food. And I’m definitely not happy that you,” he pointed a threatening finger at Felicity, “told her that I’ll be back by six. I have a job-”

 

Felicity felt anger boiling over. She could understand him being an overprotective father but she couldn’t understand him being a jerk. “You have a daughter!”

 

“What?” he growled and took one more step, invading her personal space.

 

Just like that sparks flew. There was something between them, some kind of pull ever since that first night they had spent together. She ignored the stupid feeling because it was so not the time for that.

 

“You have an amazingly smart and beautiful daughter. And she adores you even if, for the life of me, I can’t figure out why. But,” she struggled a little with the possessive pronoun, “ _your_ child is lonely Mr Queen.”

 

“And you were able to figure that out in half an hour?” he mocked.

 

“Yes, I was. I don’t care if you believe me. Hell, I don’t care if you don’t like me. Elizabeth needs more love and attention than this fracking company. QC is not a person Mr Queen. She doesn’t miss you when you’re not home or care if you break your promises. But Elizabeth cares. She also needs to be challenged before she gets into serious trouble.”

 

Her little speech had turned Oliver Queen into a statue. He stood so still that she wasn’t sure that he was still breathing.

 

“And do you care,” he began, stressing each word, “if I fire you?”

 

Felicity scoffed. “You could try Mr Queen. You could go right this instant to HR. And then you would find out that I have an ironclad contract, stating that I cannot be fired for personal reasons. So unless you can prove that I’m actually bad at my job, you’re going to have to get over it.”

 

Some women would take immense satisfaction from the fact that Oliver Queen looked ready to have an apoplexy. Felicity didn’t and not because he wasn’t an asshole. He was a gigantic asshole who was also the father of her daughter. A daughter he was unaware that they shared but a daughter he had still raised and loved when she herself had been unable to. That, in Felicity’s opinion, excused a multitude of sins. But if he thought that he could intimidate her, he had another thing coming.

 

“There’s something that’s been bugging me. Why did you call Susan Williams the dragon lady?” he asked out of the blue.

 

“That’s what Elizabeth calls her,” Felicity explained slowly as if she were talking to a baby.

 

“And did Elizabeth _tell_ you that I had promised to spend the day with her?”

 

“How else would I know?” Felicity asked not seeing the point of this conversation anymore.

 

“Ms Smoak,” he replied, sounding so calm it was scary, “apart from calling me ‘Daddy’ when the mood strikes her, Elizabeth has never spoken a word to anyone before.”

 

_Oh, frack!_

  


* * *

  


Daddy was late again. Elizabeth Queen might not know how to read the clock in the library but she knew that Raisa always served tea and sweets at six o’clock. Raisa’s sweets had been finished, grandma Moira and grandpa Walter had drunk all their tea and daddy was still gone.

 

Even though he was late, Elizabeth still loved him. In fact, she was pretty sure that she had the best daddy in the whole wide world. He liked to play all games with her and have their own tea parties, not like Mark's father Mr Denis who said that he was too important to play with dolls. Mark's father was not nice in Elizabeth's opinion but Mark was her best friend in daycare so Elizabeth didn't want him to know that. Mark was the best because he was the only one that didn't care if Elizabeth spoke or not. 

 

Daddy's only fault was that he was always late. Today it was especially unfair because she had been really good all afternoon. When grandma Moira’s friends, the Bones had come, she had waved at them and then had stayed in the kitchen with Raisa for a long time. In fact, she had been so quiet that Raisa had given her two cookies for dessert instead of one. After this morning’s escape from the dragon lady, Elizabeth had been careful not to make the grownups angry. She had eaten all of her vegetables, even the ones that Raisa called ‘braless sprouts’. Sprouts were yucky and they smelled so bad that they had to be a punishment. But Elizabeth had still eaten them because Daddy had promised to her in front of F’lcity that he would be home by six. And like F’lcity said, promises were important.

 

F’lcity was her new friend, like Pascal was Rapunzel’s friend. Pascal couldn’t talk because he was a little silent like Elizabeth, but Daddy never minded that his baby girl was silent. He told her all the time and it always made her feel better. F’lcity also had blonde hair like her and liked puzzles but F'lcity could talk for a long long time. She had been so nice to Elizabeth even after Elizabeth had eaten her chocolate and M&M’s. If Elizabeth had known about her office before, she would have run away every time they left her with the dragon lady.

 

The door to the library opened slowly. She put down the book with the beautiful pictures and looked up to see that Daddy was finally there.

 

“Hey baby.”

 

Elizabeth frowned. Daddy knew very well that she was not a baby anymore.

 

“What are you reading?” He took the book from her and laughed. “Aren’t you a little young to be studying ‘The Complete World of Greek Mythology’?” Daddy put the book on the table. “Anyway, I heard you were a really good girl.”

 

She nodded and smiled. She was very proud for keeping her promise. Maybe now that he was here they could watch Frozen on the big TV together. Sometimes he even let her eat some popcorn which was great.

 

“Listen baby,” he said and sat down in front of her. Oh, if grandma Moira saw Daddy sitting on the floor in his work clothes, he would be in trouble. “You scared me a lot today when I couldn’t find you.”

 

Elizabeth looked down. She was not sorry she had made a new friend but she was sorry that she had scared him.

 

“I want you to promise me that you won’t do that again.” He took her hand in his. Daddy’s hands were huge. “You can’t leave daycare again, ok? And you can’t visit Ms Smoak at work either.”

 

That, Elizabeth didn’t understand. Who was Ms Smoke?

 

“Felicity,” Daddy explained and Elizabeth wanted to giggle. Her new friend’s last name was very funny. “You can’t visit Felicity at work. Ok?”

 

Ok? No, it was not ok! Elizabeth took a deep breath and was about to start screaming to show him that she didn't agree when she remembered F'licity asking her to use her words. Words were not easy for her. Most of the times, they got stuck in her throat especially when she was sad or angry.

 

“No,” she told Daddy hoping that he would understand. “No, no, no, NO.” There was no way he wouldn’t understand now. She would visit F'licity because she was her friend and that was that.

 

“Elizabeth, you can’t go to Ms Smoak’s office,” he said in his serious voice. “You are not allowed to go there ever again. I forbid it.”

 

Daddy had been very naughty today in Elizabeth’s opinion. First, he had left her with the dragon lady while he had gone to work. Then, he had been late even though she had been a good girl all afternoon. Now, he wanted her to give up her friend.

 

Well, Daddy was wrong and Elizabeth was going to prove it.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So Elizabeth Queen is planning something... Like father, like daughter! 
> 
> Thanks for reading!


	3. In which Elizabeth comes up with a great idea

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guys, I cannot stress enough how much your kind words have meant to me. Thank you for the lovely comments and kudos!

Maggie Jones-Merlyn and Felicity Smoak couldn’t be more different in appearance and temperament. Maggie was a tall, curvy, serene, redhead Amazon who hated wearing dresses and high heels. She firmly believed that wearing makeup was only for those special times that she had to visit Tommy’s club or for those boring galas that they sometimes had to attend. She adored jeans, sneakers and her comfy sweatpants more than anything. Her best friend on the other hand was a petite blonde dynamo who loved designer heels more than she loved her own feet. Felicity jokingly said that she spent her whole paycheck on makeup and red wine and it wasn’t far from the truth.

****

Being married to a man like Tommy Merlyn had been for Maggie as unexpected as the ending of that Avengers movie that Felicity had dragged her to. For one, she had never thought that she would be staying in a mansion. Most days, it felt like she was living a dream. In that dream a handsome, sexy billionaire and club owner called Tommy had decided to marry her, a poor and hard-working school teacher. She hated to admit it but sometimes her insecurities got the better of her. Growing up in a two-bedroom apartment with a large Greek family and an Irish grandmother had not exactly prepared her for the Merlyn lifestyle. Hence, this impromptu meeting with her best friend.

****

Currently Felicity was sitting on the expensive beige couch, looking slightly uncomfortable. It was kind of weird for them to meet in the Merlyn home but necessary in this case.

****

“So what’s wrong?” Felicity asked.

****

“Why do you think there’s something wrong?”

****

Felicity removed her glasses and rubbed her tired eyes.

****

“Maggie we never meet here. You come to my place or we go to Jitters. Even Verdant would have been a better choice. You hate this house.”

****

Maggie winced. “Is it so obvious?”

****

Felicity held her hand comfortingly. “Not to other people. But I am your best friend.”

****

Maggie smiled. “Yes you are. And this is an emergency.”

****

“Are you pregnant?” Felicity squealed. “Are we going to have a little ‘Toggie’ baby?”

****

“No,” Maggie replied. It was bad enough that the tabloids speculated about a possible pregnancy every other week. “And what the heck is a ‘Toggie’?”

****

“It’s your shipper name. You add Tommy and Maggie together and you get ‘Toggie’.”

****

“Oh my God, that’s awful. Wait till you get married. I swear I’ll find the worst shipper name for you and your husband.”

****

Felicity huffed. “So you’re not pregnant?”

****

Maggie rolled her eyes. Her best friend had been dropping hints that she would become a great godmother for a long time now.

****

“Try not to look so disappointed, Fel.”

****

“Frack, I’m turning into my mother,” Felicity lamented and collapsed on the couch.

****

Maggie genuinely laughed at that.

****

“Anyway, my emergency is the ‘I’m a poor schoolteacher who married Tommy Merlyn’ kind. I need a favor.”

****

“Name it.”

****

Maggie grabbed her iPad from the table and pulled up the most infamous gossip site in Starling. There was a photo published of her going to Jitters last Saturday morning dressed in jeans and a tank top with no hint of makeup whatsoever. The comments were not kind.

****

Felicity perused the offending remarks and raised her eyebrows.

****

“These are nasty.”

****

Yes, they were. Some of them were not so bad, just declarations of love for Tommy and marriage proposals. But there were a few that could hurt even the most cold-hearted celebrity.

****

_‘Gosh Tommy, she’s a pig. After all the leggy models did you have to settle for a fatty?’_

****

_‘Her thighs are the size of mountains! Lol, I bet Tommy is cheating on her every night at Verdant.’_

****

_‘I heard that he has an office in the club for special one-on-one meetings… ;-)’_

****

_‘I give them one year. He’ll come to his senses and file for divorce soon.’_

****

Usually Maggie ignored the gossip sites because they came with the territory. This one however was quite popular with her colleagues and she had not been in the best of moods lately. If she could do something about it, she definitely would.

****

“Want to me to delete the photo?” Felicity asked.

****

“I don’t want to get you in trouble, Fel. You swore never to do that again.”

****

“Maggie, this is nothing for me. It won’t even take five minutes to get rid of this.”

****

Felicity rummaged through her huge handbag until she found her own tablet. It was a known model but she had modified it so much that it was actually unrecognizable.

****

“Wow, you really get good Wi-Fi in here.”

****

Maggie shrugged. “It’s one of the perks of living in the Mausoleum.”

****

Felicity laughed at the nickname they had given the mansion and opened her bag again. She took out one bag of Ruffles Original, opened it and started munching while furiously typing at the same time.

****

Maggie got up and called for two bottles of mineral water. Felicity was going to be very thirsty after her hacking and it was an unspoken rule that you didn’t enter the mansion’s kitchen unless it was a dire emergency. Instead you used the intercom system and called for whatever you needed.

****

Soon enough, a young girl who couldn’t be more than twenty brought two bottles of water. Maggie thanked her and returned to her friend. In an act of defiance, she sat cross-legged on the couch without removing her shoes. Her father-in-law would have a stroke if he saw her.

****

“Done!” Felicity exclaimed. “I took the site down and replaced it with videos of hedgehogs farting.”

****

Maggie laughed and gave her a hug. “Thank you Fel. I promise to be more tough and not to let these things bother me anymore.”

****

“You don’t have to be tough. You’re entitled to feeling a little insecure. But I worry about you, Maggie. Is everything alright with Tommy?”

****

“Why do you ask?”

****

“Because usually nothing fazes you. It should take more than one crappy photo and some unflattering comments to rattle you.”

****

“I’ve been thinking about some stuff… And you know, just wondering why Tommy decided to marry me. What if it was too soon?”

****

“This is so not true,” Felicity said exasperated. “And you should talk to Tommy. He adores you, Maggie. And he has a right to know if something is bothering you.”

****

“Fine,” Maggie sighed. “Enough about that. I want to hear about you. It’s been ages since we had a red wine and loud karaoke night.”

****

“I’m free on Saturday.”

****

“It’s on, babe. So how’s work? Ernie is still an asshole?”

****

“It’s ok. And Ernie has the asshole gene. There’s no way to get rid of that,” Felicity remarked. She opened her bottle and drank almost half in one go. “I met Oliver Queen,” she announced, speaking so fast that Maggie was confused for a moment.

****

“You met the boss? Tommy’s best friend?” Maggie asked, surprised. “How did that happen?”

****

“Does it matter? I just met him. And I’m afraid I didn’t make a very good first impression.”

****

“Oh, please! As if we care about Oliver Queen!” Maggie was not Queen’s biggest fan. And it didn’t help that he kept her at arm’s length, treating her as if she were a temporary aberration in Tommy’s bachelor lifestyle.

****

Felicity opened the bag of chips and started munching again.

****

“Fel? Are you hiding something?”

****

“I might have made some comments on the way he was treating his daughter.”

****

Maggie’s eyes widened. “You talked to him about Elizabeth? Damn girl, you’ve got some balls! Elizabeth is a touchy subject around the Queen family.”

****

Felicity refused to meet her eyes.

****

As Maggie was about to interrogate her friend who was definitely keeping secrets, the door opened interrupting them.

****

“Magdalena, I wasn’t aware that you had a guest,” her father-in-law said.

****

Malcolm Merlyn was odd. There was no other way to describe him. If it had been up to Maggie, they would have moved into an apartment by now. Tommy however loved his father and claimed that he was the only family he had left. So, for Tommy’s sake Maggie had agreed to stay in the Mausoleum where she still felt like a stranger.

****

“Malcolm,” she said politely, “this is my best friend, Felicity Smoak.”

****

Malcolm was a handsome man and impeccably dressed. He approached the couch when a panicked Felicity did her best to hide the bag of Ruffles and to surreptitiously clean her hands with a handkerchief. Maggie remained seated while barely managing to suppress a laugh.

****

“Mr Merlyn,” Felicity said, cheeks burning with embarrassment, “it’s a pleasure to finally meet you.”

****

Malcolm squeezed her hand. “We would have met sooner if my only son hadn’t decided to elope with your friend.”

****

Great, Maggie thought, it took him about four seconds before he started complaining about her. Maggie embodied all the things that Malcolm disapproved of. He didn’t waste any opportunity to point out to her that she would never be good enough for Tommy.

****

Felicity was looking mortified. She got up quickly and mattered some excuse about being late for a meeting.

****

“I’ll see you on Saturday, Maggie. It was nice meeting you, Mr Merlyn.”

****

Felicity mouthed an apology for leaving Maggie alone with him and closed the door.

****

“Would you like something to drink Malcolm? Tommy will be running late tonight.”

****

“I suspect my son will make a habit of running late.” His voice was filled with enough venom to kill a Tibetan pit viper.

****

Maggie tried to ignore the hateful words but couldn’t. It was too soon. First she had to deal with her own insecurities, then with the hate online. She refused to take anymore.

****

“Are you trying to imply something Malcolm?”

****

“I wouldn’t get too comfortable if I were you,” he informed her. “Tommy chose you in a moment of grief. At some point he’s going to wake up and realize his mistake. After all, my son has loved only one woman.”

****

“What are you talking about?”

****

“I’m sorry. I thought he had told you about Laurel Lance. In any case, any comparison between the two of you is not in your favor. She was the daughter of the Mayor. A brilliant and successful lawyer as well as a beautiful woman. To put it simply, Laurel Lance was exceptional.”

****

Unlike Maggie, an average, perfectly ordinary, plus-sized school teacher was the implied statement.

****

“Moreover,” he continued, “she died tragically before my son had the chance to pursue the relationship. I’m certain he still regrets that missed opportunity.”

****

Normally, she wouldn’t have allowed Malcolm to affect her in any way. This was a familiar battle; one they had been engaging since the day Tommy had introduced them. But on the off chance that her father-in-law was right what could she do? How did one fight with the memory of a ghost and win?

 

 

* * *

 

 

“Mr Queen? You have a visitor.”

 

Oliver sighed. So far this had been the week from hell. First Elizabeth, then work. Today for instance, he should have left for home hours ago but he had been stuck in the office since noon. He had barely had time to eat a sandwich, undo his tie and drink some coffee.

 

“Who is it, Mary?”

 

“It’s your mother.”

 

A visit from Moira did not bode well for Oliver’s evening. He could see her through the glass, looking stylish and ready for business as usual.

 

“Please, show her in,” he sighed. “And then you’re free for the evening.”

 

‘Thank you Mr Queen.”

 

Mary invited his mother in the office and gathered her things. It was best to wait for her departure before they started talking. Not that he didn’t trust his assistant but it paid to be extra careful when discussing personal matters.

 

“Mom,” he said as soon as Mary had left, “I wasn’t aware that we had a meeting.”

 

“We don’t. Walter and I have reservations at Table Salt.” Moira sat down on the armchair facing his desk.

 

“Did something happen at home?”

 

“No, darling. Elizabeth is fine. She did try to climb on the kitchen counter to get the cookie jar but Raisa caught her in time.”

 

Oliver felt like banging his head on the wall. His last conversation with Elizabeth had not gone so well and in the last week she had done everything she could think of to express her displeasure.

 

“So, what’s the purpose of this visit?”

 

Moira was too well mannered to tell him that she had a right to visit her son at her own company anytime she pleased but it was clear that she was thinking it.

 

“I’m here about the Starling General charity ball.”

 

“I’m afraid I can’t come this year.”

 

“Well, I’m afraid that as the CEO of Queen Consolidated your attendance is mandatory.”

 

“Co-CEO,” he corrected.

 

“Don’t be disingenuous, you know that Walter is going to retire soon.”

 

Oliver didn’t like that idea at all. His mother would love to spend more time with her second husband but Oliver found Walter’s expertise absolutely necessary. At this point and with so many projects hanging in the balance, he couldn’t picture holding the reins on his own.

 

“Anyway, I expect you to be there. This year the ball is held in the Starling City Portrait Gallery. People will be able to admire the paintings while donating money to the hospital.”

 

“It’s a win-win,” Oliver mocked.

 

Moira ignored him. “You should bring a date. I heard Helena Bertinelli is back from Italy.”

 

Ah, so this was the true purpose of her visit. Another subject that they disagreed on. Moira firmly believed that Oliver should fine a nice young woman to marry. Oliver on the other hand knew that he had no time for romantic entanglements. He spent all day in QC and when he eventually got home, he would much rather hang out with his daughter than entertain a date. Certainly, he felt no need to revisit his promiscuous past.

 

“Helena might be beautiful but she’s nuttier than a Snickers bar.”

 

“Oliver, language!” Moira admonished him.

 

“I’ll see what I can do about the ball. As far as Helena is concerned I think it would be best if I don’t open that can of worms.”

 

“Very well,” she replied, sounding disappointed. “Have you thought about talking to the specialist I suggested?”

 

“Mom. Elizabeth is fine.”

 

“She’s not fine, Oliver. As a parent, I can assure you that ignoring your child’s issues will not end well for either of you.”

 

Oliver was feeling exhausted. Also, he was sick and tired of everyone offering parenting advice and his mother was no exception. Would people ever accept that as Elizabeth’s father he knew what was best for her?

 

“Well Mother,” he said in an even tone, “if you’re such a great parent yourself why did my sister move more than five thousand miles away from Starling?”

 

“How dare you? She moved to pursue a career in fashion.”

 

“She moved to be away from you.”

 

For a few seconds, the silence was deafening. But before Moira could respond to that hateful comment, Walter entered the office.

 

“There you are,” he said and kissed her cheek. His next words proved that he had noticed the tension between mother and son.

 

“Moira, we’ll be late for our reservation. Do you mind waiting for me outside? I’d like a word with Oliver first.”

 

She nodded and left the room silently.

 

Walter approached the desk. Oliver was feeling slightly guilty, almost as if he had been called to the principal’s office.

 

“What can I do for you Walter?”

 

“For the past few months the Accounting Department of QC has been looking into a very specific discrepancy. They came to me when they first noticed it since I am responsible for the financial health of the company.”

 

For the life of him, Oliver had no idea where this was going. He had never heard of any type of discrepancy before. Oliver had taken an active role in the company only after his father’s death. And during the first few months, he had been so lost in his own pain that he had ignored QC and the responsibilities that came with it. Walter had been a rock back then, acting as an interim CEO and securing the company’s future.

 

“Go on,” he said gently.

 

“Right. So I had them investigate the matter. To be honest, I thought that by now I would have a concrete answer. Instead all I have is more questions.”

 

He pulled a portable hard drive from his briefcase.

 

“Each month a small amount of money has been siphoned to an unidentified account in Corto Maltese. This has been going on for five years. The amount missing is more than two million dollars.”

 

Oliver got up and stared at Walter. “Is the money in Corto Maltese now?”

 

“Your guess is as good as mine.”

 

"Have you talked to my mother about it?"

 

"No. There's no need for that."

 

“What do you suggest that we do?”

 

Oliver might feel confident in his leadership abilities but he was not stupid to think that he could figure out this mystery faster than Walter. Besides, being a good CEO meant first and foremost knowing your people. And Walter was the only one who could deal with this efficiently and effectively.

 

“I have an idea. The problem is that I’m certain that you won’t like it.”

 

“Whatever you think is best Walter. I just want to get to the bottom of this.”

 

“Well then, we should call Felicity Smoak. I think we’ll need her help.”

 

 

* * *

 

 

Elizabeth had first realized that all the other children had mommies when she had to spend one morning with the dragon lady. A boy named Frank had asked her what was her mommy’s name. She had thought and thought but she couldn’t remember ever having a mommy. She had a wonderful Daddy, a grandma and a grandpa and a Raisa (which other children didn’t have) but no mommy. She tried to ask Daddy about it but the words had gotten stuck again. And she didn’t want to make Daddy any sadder than he was.

 

So Elizabeth had an idea. She would look at all of grandma Moira’s photo books and in there she would find her mommy for sure. When grandpa Walter had seen her in the library with all those books around her, he hadn’t gotten mad. Instead, he had helped. This was when Elizabeth had found out that there had been a grandpa Robert who was now in heaven and that she had an aunt Thea who was the most beautiful princess. Auntie Thea didn’t live with them because she was far away in a place called Frances but grandpa had said that auntie Thea had met Elizabeth as a baby and that she had bought her Mr Squiggle, the Penguin. Mr Squiggle was Elizabeth’s favorite plush toy so her auntie must be the smartest person in the whole world.

 

But no matter how hard she had tried, she hadn’t found out a picture of her mommy in the photo books. Elizabeth wanted to ask someone about it but who? Daddy would get sadder and she could never talk to grandma Moira or grandpa Walter or Raisa. Then she had overheard the dragon lady talk to Frank’s mom.

 

“It’s a pity really. Her mother didn’t want her so Oliver has no choice but to raise her. To be so young and be stuck with a child…”

 

That night Elizabeth had gone home and cried and cried. Daddy was very sad but she couldn’t tell him what happened. Her voice didn’t work for two whole days.

 

Then she had decided Frank’s mom and the dragon lady were stupids. Elizabeth didn’t care about having a mommy. After all, she had the bestest Daddy. And she had her grandparents and Raisa and Mark who was her boyfriend because he was a boy and a friend. And she also had a F’lcity. If only Daddy wasn’t so silly, then F’lcity and Elizabeth could become great friends.

 

Elizabeth’s plan to get Daddy to let her visit F’lcity was not working so well. She had refused to speak to Daddy for days. She had even refused to let him sit with her while she watched Frozen on the big TV. And last night, she had refused to let him kiss her goodnight. But Daddy didn’t understand so she hadn’t seen F’lcity again. Today, she had tried to leave daycare like last time but the dragon lady was extra careful now.

 

Elizabeth was so mad at Daddy that next time they played princesses and pirates on a ship, she would make him be the princess and let the fish eat him instead of saving him. Huh!

 

Elizabeth was still thinking of punishing Daddy when Tasha came in her room. Tasha was a girl who stayed with her at nights when all the other grownups were busy. Elizabeth liked her but Raisa was much better.

 

“Hello, Miss Elizabeth.”

 

She sat on the rocking chair next to the bed.

 

“Your grandparents are out having dinner and Mr Queen will be back from work soon. Raisa is visiting her sister in the hospital.”

 

Tasha knew that Elizabeth couldn’t speak so she took care to explain things to her. Elizabeth cocked her head to make Tasha explain some more.

 

“Oh, don’t you worry Miss! Raisa’s sister just hurt her leg going down the stairs but she’s fine. She just needs some company. My mom used to say that people in the hospital always need to see their friends and family to get better.”

 

Elizabeth wasn’t worried. She had heard of the hospital before. Mark’s baby sister was in his mother’s belly last year. Then one day Mark had told her that they had picked up baby Evelyn from the hospital. It was not a bad place. Mark had said that it was just a big white building full of sick people and babies.

 

Tasha picked up a book from the nightstand. “Should we read one story or two tonight?”

 

Elizabeth nodded without paying attention. She was shaking with excitement because now she had a great idea. If she could just get to the hospital then all her friends and F’lcity would have to visit her. And Daddy wouldn’t get mad.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Elizabeth is scary! I don't know about you but I'm sure that this girl will conquer the world one day. 
> 
> Anyway, what do we think about Malcolm? Is he an asshole or what? And what about the missing money?
> 
> See you next week when our favorite couple will cross swords again!


	4. In which Felicity makes several discoveries

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you guys for your continued love and support! I adore reading your comments and theories. Honestly, they make my day. 
> 
> This is a pretty important chapter for our favorite family. Enjoy!

It had been two weeks since Felicity had met her daughter. In those two weeks she had been able to think of little else. She certainly hadn’t been able to focus on stupid Ernie and his assignments. Today, he had decided that she had to clean the servers from a ‘very dangerous’ virus when actually three male employees had decided to watch a video of a notorious celebrity having sex on a yacht. The geniuses had illegally downloaded the video and it had infected the servers with spam. It was definitely annoying but not dangerous.

****

And what was more annoying was that it hadn’t taken her mind of Elizabeth. Her baby girl was all she could think about. Felicity was obsessively speculating about everything. What did she like to eat? Was she happy? Who were her friends? What were her favorite toys? Did she love pandas as much as her cute little shoes suggested she did? Did she think of their first meeting at all? There were no answers to her questions. 

****

How in Google’s name was she supposed to get in touch with Elizabeth? Her father was not Felicity’s biggest fan since she had tried to give him parenting advice. He was definitely not going to make it any easier. Oliver Queen needed a push in the right direction. Maybe it was time to begin the second phase of her plan.

****

The phone rang before she could give it any further thought.

****

“IT Department. You’re speaking with Felicity Smoak.”

****

“Ms Smoak, I’m calling on behalf of Mr Queen. He’d like to see you in his office as soon as possible.”

****

She got up to the 38th floor in a flash. The EA barely threw her a glance and pointed towards the open glass door. Inside the office Oliver was leaning on his desk with his arms folded.

****

“I’d like to know why I’m getting fired,” she said with as much authority as she could muster.

****

“No one is getting fired,” came the reply from her left. In her haste to give her boss a piece of her mind she hadn’t even noticed her other boss, Walter Steele sitting on the leather couch.

****

“Then why am I here?”

****

“Ms Smoak please close the door and have a seat,” Oliver said.

****

She complied. If he hadn’t called her there to give her the boot, why were both CEOs looking at her like that? It was a mystery and Felicity hated mysteries.

****

“Felicity,” Walter began, “we asked specifically for you because we need someone trustworthy to look into a matter of great importance.”

****

“What about Ernie?”

****

Oliver scoffed but didn’t comment. It appeared that he had a very good idea of Ernie’s capabilities and lack of trustworthiness.

****

“You come highly recommended,” Walter explained, obviously referring to her friendship with the heir of Merlyn Global.

****

“How do you know Tommy?” Oliver interrupted. There was something, an accusation in his gaze that she didn’t like at all.

****

Felicity fixed her glasses and crossed her legs at the ankle. Damn the man for making her feel so nervous.

****

“Tommy is married to my best friend. He was trying to convince me to work for his father but I didn’t want to mix business with pleasure. Not that Tommy or I have ever -”

****

“His loss is our gain, I’m sure.” Thankfully, Walter's comment stopped her from going off on an embarrassing tangent.

****

He was such a kind man. Felicity didn’t know much about the late Robert Queen but she was glad that her daughter had Walter Steele in her life.

****

“How can I help you gentlemen?” she asked, focusing on the present to prevent herself from obsessing over Elizabeth.

****

“There is a financial issue,” Walter answered.

****

“Shouldn’t your CFO be here for this?”

****

“Fe-li-ci-ty.” It was the first time Oliver had used her first name since that fateful night. It was a single word but he made it sound longer than a sentence. 

****

Right, she had to let Walter speak. Trying to calm her overactive mind, she focused on the man sitting opposite her and ignored Oliver Queen.

****

“We have recently discovered an accounting error. It appears that the amount of two million dollars has been missing. We would have noticed sooner but it was done so slowly over the course of five years that even our best people had trouble figuring it out.”

****

“Where is the money now?” Felicity asked.

****

“I hope that it’s still in an anonymous account set up in the Bank of Corto Maltese.”

****

“Uh, Corto Maltese is worse than Switzerland.”

****

“Correct,” Walter said approvingly. “They are under no obligation to give up any relevant information and it would take ages for our lawyers to force them. Meanwhile, each month a small amount of money is still being transferred to this account without our consent.”

****

Felicity didn’t have to be a genius to understand what they were about to ask from her.

****

“If I may be blunt Ms Smoak,” Walter said, “you have a double master’s degree in Cyber Security and Computer Sciences. I believe that means that you can use your considerable skills to solve this mystery way faster than our Legal Department could.”

****

“And if I say no?” She didn’t plan of course on declining but she had to know the answer to that question. Working closely with the boss and establishing trust had been her goal all along.

****

“Then we ask someone else. We would however appreciate it if you could keep this conversation private,” Oliver Queen warned.

****

The aggravating male had decided that he didn’t want to be ignored anymore. Felicity could feel his energy coming at her in waves. His intensity should be annoying but it wasn’t. In fact, and she started to seriously doubt her sense of self-preservation, she kind of liked it.

****

“Will you do it, Ms Smoak?”

****

She turned her attention towards him. Dressed in a custom made Italian grey suit, a crisp white shirt and a blue tie, he looked like every woman’s wet dream. 

****

“I’ll do it.”

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

Felicity had returned to the Dungeon intending to put the hard drive that  Walter had given her somewhere safe and then to go home for the day. The problem with that was her mind’s refusal to let go of the mystery.

 

When Felicity concentrated on something she got stuck. And when she got stuck, she couldn’t move on until she had found a solution. It was the reason why she had been so successful first at school and later at MIT. Quitting just wasn’t in her DNA. 

 

The Bank of Corto Maltese had a state-of-the-art security system. The firewall was so good that Felicity had had to write new code just to fight it. The virus - because only a damn virus could break through that firewall - was unbeatable if she could say so herself. In a stroke of genius, she had created a virus that could duplicate itself. So, when the security systems of the bank managed to erase it, another two popped up in its place like the Lernaean Hydra. The problem was that it had taken all night. By the time she was finished, she had eaten all of her stash of junk food and she had drunk at least ten cans of Diet Coke but she was damn proud of herself.

 

Surprisingly, hacking the bank was the least of Felicity’s problems. It had been hard work and she had enjoyed that immensely. Since college and Cooper, she had avoided it like the plague thinking that it would only bring back bad memories. The truth was though that she had stifled a part of herself. Working in the IT Department was fine both because it paid the bills and because it had brought her closer to Elizabeth but she was not meant just for cleaning servers from porn spam. Her intelligence was supposed to be used for something better. As soon as Oliver began to trust her, she intended to vie for a higher position within the company. She had made a promise to herself; one day she would create something that would make her daughter proud of her.

 

Right now, she had to decide what to do with the other piece of sensitive information she had found in the hard drive. There was no way that Oliver Queen and Walter Steele would have given her that drive if they knew what it contained. But how could they not? If this got out it had the potential to be quite damaging for QC.

 

Felicity grabbed her coat and decided to walk to Jitters for a cup of coffee. The coffee would help wake her up and the walk would clear her head. It was 7.30 in the morning so there was no point in going home just to get back to work. Plus, she preferred the Dungeon this early in the morning. No Ernie, no co-workers and she didn’t have to interact with anyone if she didn’t want to.

 

When she got upstairs she saw that Roy Harper had the morning shift in the lobby. She waved and asked him if he wanted anything from Jitters.

 

“No, Blondie. I’m fine. And I wouldn’t drink anything from that place even if they tied me up and forced me to.”

 

Roy was a health nut which drove Felicity crazy. She’d rather eat as much junk food as she could and then exercise than to eat kale or God forbid, tofu. She shuddered with revulsion. Maggie often complained that Felicity had the palate of a two-year-old.

 

“Well, I’m going to get a triple shot caramel latte,” she bragged. “And I am going to enjoy it immensely.”

 

Roy laughed. Which was nice because it happened so rare. Not as rare as Oliver of course but still… And why was she still standing in the middle of the lobby thinking about Oliver Queen?

 

“You look like shit by the way,” Roy said.

 

“Thank you for your kind words, Abercrombie. Maybe I should have them engraved on my tombstone.  _ ‘Here lies Felicity Smoak. She looked like shit by the way’. _ ”

 

Roy laughed again, even louder. Before she had the chance to tell him that he had a nice laugh, she heard someone clear a throat behind her. She made an abrupt turn only to meet the eyes of her nemesis.

 

“Ms Smoak. Mr Harper. Good morning.”

 

“Good morning, Mr Queen,” Roy replied politely.

 

“I see you’re hard at work,” he deadpanned.

 

Felicity took a minute to study him. Today’s suit was a dark blue that almost looked black, tailored to perfection. She sighed. Oliver Queen was too gorgeous for her sleep deprived brain. 

 

“Actually, I was just going to get a cup of coffee.” Why she felt the need to make excuses, she had no idea.

 

“Ah, don’t let us keep you then. I trust you have locked the office in your absence? We wouldn’t want you to lose the key,” he added and headed towards the executive elevator.

 

It took Felicity half an hour, half a chocolate muffin and a whole cup of coffee from Jitters before she managed to grasp the meaning of that last enigmatic comment.

 

She was in the elevator in the blink of an eye and spent the whole ride to the 38th floor positively fuming. Disregarding poor Mary who had just arrived and was looking over the schedule, she opened the glass doors and marched into his office.

 

“Mr Queen,” she called sharply. “Was it your idea or Mr Steele’s to plant fake files on the drive you gave me?”

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

Oliver considered lying. Then he discarded that option. This woman was way too smart to believe that he had no idea about what she was talking about.

 

“I see you’ve discovered something,” he said instead, prevaricating.

 

She snorted inelegantly reminding him of his daughter. 

 

“Don’t keep me in suspense,” he mocked. 

 

Oliver couldn’t help himself. There was just something about her, something that made him behave irrationally. Put him in a room full of reporters, he would keep his cool, no problem. Put him in a room with a tiny blonde woman and he lost it. 

 

He examined her carefully. She was still wearing yesterday’s clothes; a black, tight pencil skirt and a soft, floral top. Her hair was in a ponytail and her blue eyes were sparkling behind her glasses. At first glance, someone would think that there was nothing special about her. Spend two minutes alone with her and you realized that she shone brighter than the sun. There was a good reason why Tommy had sung her praises to Walter and why Elizabeth was so obsessed with her.

 

“You asked me to look into the missing money and I did that. I stayed awake all night and through a sequence of very awesome hacks - which you do not need to hear about but which were totally awesome by the way - I managed to uncover your thief’s tracks. This person began gradually siphoning money in the month that Walter became the interim CEO.”

 

“Are you saying that Walter has something to do with it?”

 

“Of course not. Unless he is a supervillain and he was planning this all along. Because no one but a supervillain would ask people to find the person responsible for a crime that he himself has committed.”

 

Oliver almost chuckled at that ridiculous statement. “Somehow, I doubt that Walter Steele wears a cape at night and steals money from his own company.”

 

She threw her hands in the air. “Capes are for superheroes, Mr Queen. The bad guys wear full body armor and scary masks.”

 

“Seems to me that it’s best to be the villain then. Capes are very dangerous. They could get stuck in anything. Plus they look utterly ridiculous to me.”

 

She smiled at his joke, momentarily forgetting that she was supposed to be pissed at him. Unfortunately, she pulled herself together rather quickly.

 

“Anyway, since I ruled out Walter I had to investigate further. The problem is Mr Queen that the order for the monthly deposits originated in this office.”

 

Oliver got up and went to stand in front of her. “Impossible.”

 

“Once you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains, no matter how improbable, must be the truth,” she quoted. “And I’m telling you that the order came from your office. The person who issued it had to use a specific code unique to the CEO. This code is 1141. Ring a bell?”

 

Oliver did a double take. He wasn’t an easy person to surprise but this number hadn’t been used in almost six years.

 

“Ms Smoak,” he said, approaching her slowly, the scent of coconuts and something fresh assaulting his nose, “this is my father’s personal passcode and he was already gone by the time it was used. Are you telling me that he rose from the dead to send money to an unidentified account?”

 

“Obviously not,” she responded with equanimity. “So if we rule out Walter and your father and I’m assuming yourself…”

 

He nodded, an ugly suspicion starting to form in his brain.

 

“Then there’s no one left to ask.”

 

“I know who to ask,” he claimed and was about to go and do just that when she stopped him.

 

“Wait a minute!” She invaded his personal space, forcing him to pay attention. “What about our other problem?”

 

“What problem? Make it quick Ms Smoak.”

 

Her eyes flashed with ire at his order. “Two problems actually. First of all, I might have uncovered the thief’s tracks but I have no idea where the money is now. Because you told me that there’s more than two million dollars missing, right?”

 

Oliver nodded, motioning for her to hurry up.

 

“Well, the account is nearly empty and there is no way I can find out where the money is now. Even if I keep digging it would take ages before we had some idea of the holder’s name.”

 

That wouldn’t pose a problem for Oliver since he had a pretty good idea who was responsible. He also planned on forcing them to return every last cent.

 

“What’s the second thing?” he asked, purposefully avoiding to comment on her previous statement.

 

“The false information. You might have forgotten about it but I haven’t.”

 

“Fine,” Oliver said. “Have a seat, please.”

 

Surprisingly, she obeyed without fuss. He sat on the other armchair and looked at her.

 

“What did you find out?”

 

“There were schematics on the hard drive. The company is supposed to be working with the military on a device that can be used to open any door. It’s called the Skeleton Key.”

 

“Yes,” he admitted. “We were commissioned by the military to develop this device last year. Kord Industries has now taken over. Ted Kord might not care because he’s only thinking of his inventions but I had to shut this project down when I realized what it could be used for.”

 

“It can open any coded vault.”

 

“Correct. With a little tweaking it can also be used to hack through any security system. I value my family's privacy and my company way too much to put it in danger. It’s bad enough that we have to defend ourselves constantly from hacker attacks. With a weapon like that we wouldn’t stand a chance.”

 

“That’s true,” she reluctantly admitted. “Even I wouldn’t be able to protect our servers in the event of such an attack. And I’m the best you have,” she challenged.

 

“You are.” 

 

“Then why did you try to make me believe that this was a current project? What did you think I would do with that information? Sell the schematics of the device to our competitors?”

 

Oliver sighed. “Do you know that Walter trusts you implicitly?”

 

“I gathered as much.”

 

“And Tommy is one of your biggest fans. I called him last night and he said that he would trust you with his unborn child.”

 

She smirked. “Someday, I’ll make an awesome godmother.”

 

Oliver didn’t laugh. Tommy’s marriage was a sore point for him. 

 

“I took over Queen Consolidated after my father’s death. It was… Let’s just say that it was a much more violent event than people think.”

 

He noticed that her curiosity was piqued. It was in the tilt of her head and the fact that she had finally stopped fidgeting. Felicity Smoak must be relentless when she focused on something. It explained how she was able to stay up all night and hack into the Bank of Corto Maltese. Once more she inadvertently made him think of Elizabeth.

 

“It took me awhile to get over myself but when I did, I vowed to continue my father’s legacy. As a parent he was a failure. But as a businessman? He was the best. Now Queen Consolidated is my responsibility. I will not let anyone take that away from me.”

 

Felicity Smoak bowed her head. “So it was a test. You wanted to see what I would have done if I had gotten my hands on sensitive information.”

 

“Yes,” he admitted. “I needed to know whether you would betray me.”

 

“And are you satisfied with the results of this experiment?”  She looked him straight in the eye, fierce and more than a little angry.

 

“Yes, I’m satisfied. Because now I know.”

 

There was a charge in the air. Some kind of unwanted but mutual awareness caused by her defiance and the fact that they were sitting so close to each other. At the moment, there was enough energy between them to light a building.

 

“Mr Queen?” Mary interrupted, looking worried. “Raisa just called. She said not to worry but Elizabeth ate some peanuts. They gave her a shot of epinephrine and she seems to be fine but they decided to take her to the hospital just in case.”

 

“Oh my God!” Felicity exclaimed. She looked ashen. Oliver didn’t blame her. The very thought of his daughter in the hospital made him blanch too.

 

“Clear my schedule,” he instructed his assistant. “Is she in Starling General?”

 

“Yes, Mr Queen.”

 

Oliver grabbed his briefcase and ran to the executive elevator. His BMW was in the underground parking garage and he could be there in less than two minutes. However, by his calculations, it would take him at least twenty to reach Elizabeth.

 

“I’m coming with you,” someone said.

 

Turning back to give them a piece of his mind, he saw Felicity Smoak standing right behind him, tight-lipped and determined.

 

“I don’t have time for this.”

 

“No, you don’t,” she agreed.

 

“Fine. But you’re not getting anywhere near my daughter.”

 

She recoiled as if he had hit her and he almost regretted his cruel words.

 

“Lead the way, Mr Queen.”

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

The drive to Starling General took a lot less than twenty minutes. Oliver must have broken at least ten different traffic laws in the process. He didn’t give a damn. On the passenger side, Felicity Smoak had been gripping her seat, clearly afraid but not saying a word.

 

When they arrived they were rushed in the private wing his family had funded. He immediately spotted Raisa pacing outside a room and wringing her hands.

 

“ _ Oliver _ ,” she greeted him in Russian, “ _ I’m so happy you’re here. They won’t let me check on her _ .”

 

“ _ It’s fine Raisa, _ ” he replied in the same language, “ _ I’m here now. _ ”

 

Ignoring both Raisa and Felicity Smoak, he entered the room to find Elizabeth being examined by Dr Schwartz. Oliver exhaled in relief. Beth Schwartz was a familiar face and a damn good doctor.

 

“See, Elizabeth? Your Daddy’s here.”

 

Elizabeth turned towards him and he got his first glimpse of his baby. Her skin was red and swelling in places but otherwise she appeared to be okay. No shortness of breath or wheezing, thank God. 

 

“Daddy?” she whispered.

 

Oliver approached her, feeling the need to cry and laugh all at once. The fact that Elizabeth had been in danger made him realize something dangerous about himself. Whatever he was, he was a man who would do literally anything to save his daughter. 

 

He took her in his arms letting her slight weight and her familiar smell comfort him.

 

“Elizabeth came into direct contact with peanuts. Her nanny told me that she only ate a few but since she’s highly allergic, they were enough to cause hives and swelling of the throat. The nanny reacted quite fast, first injecting her with epinephrine and then bringing her to the emergency room.”

 

Oliver must have been staring at her, shell-shocked because she gave him a kind smile to reassure him.

 

“Relax, Mr Queen. Your daughter’s going to be fine.”

 

“Thanks Doctor Schwartz.”

 

She left with instructions to avoid all peanut products in the future and another smile.

 

Oliver kissed the top of Elizabeth’s head and rocked her in his arms like he used to do when she was a small baby. If he had been still home… If he hadn’t left for work so early… If he hadn’t been so focused on the company, the cogeneration project with Palmer and the missing money, then maybe this wouldn’t have happened.

 

“There’s just one thing I don’t understand.” He touched her under the chin lightly.

 

Elizabeth looked up. Even after all these years her clear blue gaze still had the ability to sucker punch him.

 

“Why did you eat peanuts baby? You know very well that you’re not supposed to. It’s one of the first things I taught you. Was it by mistake?”

 

Elizabeth’s expression became bashful and she refused to meet his eyes.

 

“You did this on purpose?” Oliver asked, flabbergasted. He was both furious and disbelieving. How the hell had he let something like this happen? Was his daughter so desperate for attention that she had resorted to putting herself in danger?

 

“Daddy?” she whispered shyly, looking at him through her lashes.

 

“Yes, baby? Talk to me, please,” he begged. “If I don’t know what’s wrong, then I don’t know how to help you.”

 

Talking had never been Elizabeth’s strong suit so she considered his plea carefully. A few minutes later she decided to speak.

 

Oliver had expected a ‘Daddy’ and a few words at best. He certainly did not expect the two sentences that came out of her mouth.

 

“I miss F’lcity. It hurts my heart.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, any thoughts on Oliver and Felicity? What about Elizabeth's plan? 
> 
> Keep in mind that in chapter five we'll learn some Queen family secrets. (And no, I'm not talking about the fact that Felicity is Elizabeth's mother. Not yet, at least.)
> 
> P.S. As some of you may know, I'll be taking the first two weeks of July off, so next week I'll try to update twice to make up for that.


	5. In which queens fight and princesses rise

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we go again! This chapter is (hopefully) pre-hiatus update number one. And it is an emotional rollercoaster; at least it was for me.
> 
> Enjoy!

Felicity was standing in a corridor waiting for her daughter’s father to come out of the room. Her deep and abiding hatred of hospitals had been put momentarily to rest due to her fear for Elizabeth. Even though that kind doctor had reassured both her and the Russian lady that her child was fine and they were simply waiting for the blood test results, it was still difficult for her to accept it. A mother needed to see it with her own eyes for the terror to abate. And yet, if it hadn't been for that protective instinct Felicity would have run away long before the car had reached Starling General.

****

However, Felicity was not at all certain that Oliver was going to let her in that room. And she didn’t know how to ask. His cruel words from before served as a harsh reminder that the man didn’t trust her at all. She needed someone here, someone on her side. Thank God, the only thing she had brought with her from QC was her phone which she had been clutching in her right hand, totally forgotten. She typed a message quickly.

****

_ “ Am at Starling General with the Queens. Not hurt or anything. Just need moral support. Can u come? ” _

****

_ “ Be there in 20. Should I bring coffee? ” _

****

_ “ YES! And one for Oliver too. ” _

****

Once she was satisfied that her friend would arrive shortly she focused on the Russian lady sitting on a row of plastic chairs.

****

“I’m sorry for not introducing myself before. Felicity Smoak.” Her voice sounded trembling and unsure even to her own ears.

****

The woman offered her hand with a gracious smile. “No matter. You were worried for Elizabeth. I’m Raisa and I work for Mrs Moira.”

****

Felicity sat next to her. “Pleased to meet you Raisa. And thank you for bringing Elizabeth here and making sure she was alright.”

****

“I love her as my own. Mister Oliver brought her home when she was just a little baby. I remember she had a tuft of blond hair and she was staring with big blue eyes. Always serious that one. Never laughing or crying like other children.”

****

“What about her mother?” Felicity forced herself to ask. This was a very important question because she needed to know what the people closest to the Queen family thought.

****

Raisa looked towards the closed door of the hospital room.

****

“Mister Oliver never talks about the mother. Mrs Moira says she left the baby because she didn’t want it.”

****

She should have expected that. Still, it hurt worse than a bullet to the chest. “And what do you think?” she managed to ask.

****

“I think,” Raisa answered, “that the woman loved her baby very much. After all, she could have left it in a church or in a hospital. But no. She made sure that Elizabeth was brought to her father where she would be raised with love. That was the greatest gift she could have given her.”

****

Felicity’s eyes went watery behind her glasses. Raisa’s answer had hit too close to home for comfort. Before she had the chance to reply, the door opened and Oliver stepped outside.

****

“Ms Smoak? Glad to see you’re still here.”

****

Felicity jumped to her feet. “What's happening? Is she alright?”

****

“She’ll be fine.” Turning towards Raisa he started speaking in rapid Russian. The conversation lasted about a minute or so and the only thing she understood were the names ‘Walter’ and ‘Moira’. 

****

Felicity felt lost. Once more she considered asking for permission to go inside but she didn’t know how. Chances were that he would refuse her anyway.

****

“Would you like to see her?”

****

The offer was so unexpected that Felicity gulped.

****

“M - me?” she stammered.

****

“Yes,” he pulled her aside. “My daughter says you’re her friend. Which is pretty astonishing considering that she rarely speaks more than two words.”

****

“Oh Oliver,” she breathed and placed a hand on his forearm, forgetting her nerves. There had been a connection between her and Elizabeth since their first meeting. If she hadn’t been a woman of science, she would have thought that her little girl had recognized her on some level. The problem was that this man who had been her father and only protector for four and half years was hurt by it.

****

“We’ll talk about it later,” he said dismissing her worries. “It’s best if you go inside now.”

****

Felicity gave him a grateful nod and grabbed the doorknob. He stopped her with a touch on the shoulder.

****

“Just be careful with her. Okay?” It was both a warning and a plea.

****

“Always,” she assured him and entered the room with a deep breath.

****

Elizabeth’s eyes lighted up when she spotted her.

****

“F’lcity!”

****

Felicity smiled at the way she struggled with her name. Her baby girl was too cute for her own good. And too smart.

****

“Elizabeth, I heard they poked you with a needle today.”

****

She nodded seriously. She lifted the pink dress she was wearing and pointed somewhere on her thigh.

****

“Wanna see?”

****

Felicity approached the bed. She could barely see a red dot where the EpiPen had punctured the skin. Regardless, she admired her baby’s courage. “Wow, you must have been very brave.”

****

Elizabeth smiled, looking very proud of herself. Felicity sat next to her and resisted the urge to squeeze her. She might not appreciate a hug from a woman she had only met twice.

****

“Listen Lizzie,” Felicity began, intending on delivering a lecture about the consumption of peanuts when she noticed that her daughter was making a grimace of displeasure. “What’s wrong baby girl?”

****

“I’m not Lizzie. I’m Elizabeth because I’m a Queen,” she announced.

****

Felicity gave a startled laugh. “What?”

****

“The Queen is an Elizabeth,” she explained. “I’m an Elizabeth too because I’m a Queen.”

****

Felicity could not hold her laughter back any longer. Her little girl would become one day an amazing woman. Maybe not the Queen of England but definitely the queen of her own life.

****

“Who told you that?”

****

“Grandma Moira says so.”

****

Felicity was shocked to discover that Moira Queen had a sly sense of humor. She forgot the lecture about peanuts for the moment and turned on her cellphone. Elizabeth was observing her quietly.

****

“I have a puzzle game on my phone,” she explained. Maggie was always raving about this app. The game was specifically designed for preschoolers and it was supposed to help them develop spatial recognition and fine-motor skills while building their vocabulary.

****

“Want to try?”

****

Elizabeth nodded, buzzing with excitement. She focused on the screen instantly.

****

“Let’s solve the first one together,” Felicity said.

********  
  


 

* * *

  
  


 

Oliver was still reeling from his daughter’s words. 

 

_“I miss F’lcity. It hurts my heart.” _

 

How was that possible? How could she have spent half an hour with a strange woman and then miss her so much? And eating peanuts to get her own way? Oliver knew that he shouldn’t reward that type of behavior but he couldn’t find it in his heart to ignore this plea. Felicity Smoak had been right there after all. It felt wrong to deprive Elizabeth of the opportunity to see her again. Even if he didn’t plan on allowing them to be alone for more than ten minutes.

 

And the fact that his daughter had finally spoken two short but whole sentences? That was just icing on the cake. When Felicity had inadvertently informed him that Elizabeth had talked to her, he had dismissed it as an impossibility. But he had been wrong. Again.

 

Exhaling slowly through his nose, he headed towards the vending machine. This coffee would be more like brown flavored water than actual brew but he had no choice right now. The elevator doors dinged and he frowned. This was a private wing and there was no way his mother and Walter had come back that fast from the cabin. Moira had managed to convince Walter two days ago to take a much needed break from their responsibilities. It was actually good that Elizabeth’s antics had forced them to return early. That way Oliver wouldn’t have to hunt them down to discuss the missing money.

 

Maggie Jones got out of the elevator car carrying takeaway coffee from Jitters. She spotted him immediately and stopped in front of him.

 

“I brought you your usual black sludge,” she announced without preamble.

 

“What are you doing here?”

 

“Felicity texted. She left out the details though. Just told me where to find you and to bring coffee. Is she okay?”

 

It hadn’t occurred to him that Felicity would call Maggie or that she was Felicity’s best friend and that she would be understandably worried.

 

“Don’t you have work?” he asked in lieu of an answer.

 

“Fall break,” she replied tersely. “Where is Felicity?”

 

“She’s fine.” God, he sounded like a broken record. “Elizabeth ate some peanuts and they brought her to the hospital just in case. Ms Smoak was with me when I got the news and she followed along. She’s currently sitting with Elizabeth while I get some coffee.”

 

“Okay.” She offered the coffee as an olive branch. “You look tired Queen.”

 

“Thanks Jones. Where is Tommy?”

 

Maggie huffed. “He’s slaving for the Dark Overlord.”

 

“It’s his day at Merlyn Global?” He could see why she was Felicity’s best friend. They both seemed to have a colorful way with words.

 

“You know the drill. If Tommy wants to keep running Verdant then he has to learn the ropes at the company. Malcolm wanted him full time but they compromised with three days a week.”

 

Tommy and Malcolm had a weird relationship. Not that Oliver’s relationship with his own father had been much better. Robert had loved his children in his own way but he had loved the company and his secretary a lot more. Nevertheless, his death had been a real blow for everyone. Like Rebecca’s death all these years ago had been a tremendous blow for the Merlyn men. 

 

Tommy had adored his mother. Malcolm had resented that love claiming that Rebecca was turning their son into a ‘mama’s boy’. That was why after her passing he had done the best he could to harden Tommy. He was a cruel and bitter man who had almost succeeded into ruining his son’s life. Back then, Laurel had been Tommy’s only saving grace. When she had died Tommy had been lost again. Lost in addiction, in countless women and other vices. As heartless as it sounded, Oliver was not at all certain that Maggie Jones could be the one to keep his friend away from that. Perhaps, it was more accurate to say that she was just a different kind of addiction, one that Tommy needed in order to go forward.

 

“So Queen,” she said, “are you going to show me where my friend is? This triple shot latte is getting cold.”

 

“Come on. She’s spent enough time with Elizabeth anyway.”

 

When they reached the room he asked Maggie to wait outside. Opening the door he found Elizabeth and Felicity immersed in a game. Felicity was guiding his daughter to the correct solution but she was being real careful not to give away the answer. Instead, she pointed towards available pieces helping Elizabeth decide on her own. She allowed her to make mistakes and to experiment without correcting her. She was so good with Elizabeth that he felt guilty for trying to keep them away from each other. Not that he would admit it to anyone.

 

Oliver would have been content to watch their blond heads bent over the phone, matching expressions of concentration on their features but he was running out of time. Dr Schwartz would be back shortly with the additional blood work she had ordered and then they would be free to go. And Moira would be fast approaching the hospital by now.

 

“Hey,” he said softly. “Your friend is here and she brought some coffee.” 

 

“Thank Google for small mercies!” she exclaimed.

 

Oliver smiled and pointed towards the door. Elizabeth was still absorbed in the puzzle game.

 

“F’lcity? What does a ‘brastart’ mean?”

 

“A what?” she asked, perplexed.

 

Oliver was honestly confused. He crouched in front of the bed and looked up at his daughter. “Where did you hear that word honey?”

 

Elizabeth did not meet his eyes. Instead, she kept on playing with the phone. “Kids at daycare say I’m a ‘brastart’ because I don’t have a mommy.”

 

Felicity gasped. She was looking absolutely horrified by this revelation and Oliver couldn’t blame her. For a few seconds, his expression mirrored hers. Then he got mind-numbingly angry. 

 

“Elizabeth could you give the phone back to Felicity please?”

 

She seemed to think about it before she nodded. Oliver watched Felicity take the phone with the unnecessary caution of someone who was in shock.

 

He took his daughter’s small hands in his own. “This is a bad word Elizabeth. The kids who used it obviously do not know what it means. Your mommy can’t be with you but she left me in her place and I love you very, very much. You are not a bastard. You are a Queen, okay?”

 

“Is she in heaven like Tommy’s mommy?”

 

“Tommy told you about his mom?”

 

“U-huh.”

 

Oliver considered lying. Maybe it would be best for her if she thought her mother was gone. But he knew in his heart that if the woman ever returned and Elizabeth found out about her, she would be devastated that her father had lied to her.

 

“Honestly honey, I don’t know. I think that she misses you and that someday she’ll get back to you. But either way, you’ll always have me. Alright?”

 

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

Maggie watched Queen and Felicity speak with Elizabeth through the open door. The girl was considered shy by many but Maggie knew better. She had been working with kids for way too long to ignore the signs.

 

Although Elizabeth usually had problems communicating with people, she seemed to have no trouble talking to Felicity and Oliver. It made sense. Queen was her father, someone who represented safety to her and Felicity was simply Felicity. She could make anyone feel at ease without trying. Maggie wagered that even if her friend came face to face with a trained assassin she would make him smile with one of her epic babbles.

 

Maggie could also see something else, something that Tommy would find very interesting. His friend and her friend were acting weird around each other. Queen was trying hard not to touch Felicity and she was trying way too hard to ignore him. When she wasn’t paying attention however, he stared at her in wonder as if she was a puzzle he could not figure out. Trouble was definitely brewing there.

 

Felicity was whispering to Elizabeth and there was so much tenderness in her gaze that Maggie felt a pang in her heart. For all her talk about a ‘Toggie’ baby, it looked like Felicity was the one who was ready to become a mother.

 

Her friend left father and daughter alone. She walked out of the room, her movements jittery and uncoordinated.

 

“Maggie. I’m glad you’re here,” she breathed.

 

She sounded so damn relieved that Maggie wondered what the hell had happened in there.

 

“Here’s your milk and sugar with three shots of espresso,” she teased to lighten the mood and handed her the cup.

 

Felicity took the latte and stared at it as if it was a foreign object that she didn’t recognize.

 

“Fel? What’s wrong? I didn’t forget about the hazelnut cream, in case you were worried.”

 

“Babies are so sweet usually,” she said out of the blue, her gaze focused on the cup.

 

“I know,” Maggie agreed.

 

“And Elizabeth, she’s sweet but she’s also-”

 

“Troubled?”

 

“Yes. Do you think it’s because she doesn’t have a mom?” she whispered. “I mean I'm pretty sure she ate peanuts on purpose today, Maggie. And the day I met her she had run away from daycare. What’s next?”

 

“It doesn't look good,” Maggie acknowledged. “And I don't know if it's because she feels the lack of a mother. But this shows that she’s definitely struggling. If they don’t deal with it now it’ll only get worse.”

 

“I know. But Oliver is not going to listen.”

 

“Leave Queen to me,” Maggie said. Maybe it was wrong to offer false hope but she could not stand the haunted look in her friend’s eyes.

 

The sound of footsteps interrupted their discussion. Raisa appeared with a kind smile and a greeting. Maggie loved the housekeeper more than any Queen. She reminded her too much of her own mother who ruled her domain, the kitchen with an iron fist but who was a marshmallow where her children were concerned. Whenever Maggie and Tommy visited the mansion, Raisa tried to feed them until they burst while offering marital advice and words of encouragement. It was enough to make her homesick.

 

“Mister Oliver,” Raisa called softly. “Your mother is here. She's coming up.”

 

“Thank you, Raisa.”

 

“I’ll go bring something to eat, okay?”

 

“Okay,” he answered with an incline of his head. 

 

Queen was always so intense that the first time she had seen him interact with the housekeeper had been a surprise. He treated her as a mother, with a relaxed familiarity and a respect that was unlike him and she reciprocated by treating him as her child.

 

“Felicity? Do you mind staying with Elizabeth for a few minutes? I have something to discuss with my mother.”

 

His eyes had turned cold and hard. Maggie realized that it would be better if she didn’t stay for that conversation.

 

Felicity agreed gladly. She threw Maggie a hesitant glance.

 

“Go keep Elizabeth company. I’ll come by your apartment later.”

 

The moment her friend had returned to the room and closed the door, Maggie got her cellphone out of her jeans’ pocket.

 

Oliver’s phone beeped and he looked at her in question.

 

“You might not like me Queen, but you love that little girl. So I just texted you the number of someone who can help with Elizabeth. His name’s John Diggle and I’m hoping that you’ll decide to give him a chance. And if you don’t that’s fine. It’s your choice.”

 

He nodded silently and she whipped around, ready to leave before the arrival of her Highness, Moira Queen when she thought of the observation that had unsettled her earlier.

 

“And Queen? I saw the way you were looking at my best friend.”

  
  


 

* * *

 

 

 

Oliver didn’t bother making excuses for himself. First of all, he was  **not** looking at Felicity Smoak in any way, shape or form. And second, he had bigger fish to fry, namely the upcoming confrontation with his mother. He could not afford to be distracted by Maggie’s accusatory remark.

 

Moira arrived in a flurry of Chanel No 5, accompanied by Walter. Her high heels were echoing in the empty corridor announcing her presence. Oliver tried to temper his annoyance.

 

“Where is Elizabeth, darling? Is she alright? I hope you fired that nanny on the spot.”

 

“Mom, Walter. I’d like to discuss something important with you.”

 

Moira did not like the fact that he had changed the subject. She narrowed her eyes at him.

 

“Of course, Oliver.”

 

He guided them at the end of the corridor where they would not be disturbed and loosened his tie.

 

“Walter, I assume you have informed my mother about the missing money?”

 

“Yes. As a matter of fact we talked about it last night. Did Ms Smoak find out something?”

 

“Yes and no,” Oliver replied.

 

“Who is Ms Smoak?” Moira asked her husband, zeroing in on the unknown element as usual.

 

“She’s an employee of the company. You’ll love her, Moira.”

 

Oliver seriously doubted that. If his suspicions about his mother’s involvement in the embezzlement were correct, then Felicity Smoak would automatically become a threat.

 

“Anyway, at the moment we don’t know who is drawing money from the account. I however have a pretty good idea who gave the order to ‘relocate’ - for lack of a better word - company funds in the first place.” 

 

“Who?” Walter asked, looking curious. His mother’s expression on the other hand was intransigent.

 

“Your wife.”

 

“That’s impossible,” Walter scoffed. “Moira?”

 

“You don’t understand. It was your father’s dying wish.”

 

Her excuses were becoming more and more ridiculous. “Save it, Mom. I forgave your affair with Malcolm Merlyn. I agreed to keep this a secret from everyone, even Tommy. I forgave you for hiding Thea’s true paternity from us for all these years. I overlooked all the stuff that made my sister so angry that she had to move to Paris. I didn’t resent you even when you decided - unilaterally, I might add - that we had to lie to the world about the way Dad died. I stood beside you at the funeral when you told people it was an accident.”

 

Oliver took one step closer and looked into her eyes. “But no more, Mom. No more.”

 

“Oliver, I only lied about Thea to protect her.”

 

“No you lied because that’s who you are. Lies.” He took a deep, calming breath. With sudden clarity, he realized what he had to do. “I will not let my daughter grow up among lies. Because I do not want to wake up one day and find Elizabeth has moved to another continent to be away from me.”

 

“If you feel that way, then why are you still staying in my home?”

 

“Now Moira, perhaps it would be best-”

 

“No, Walter. She’s right. It’s time Elizabeth and I moved to our own place. But you should know that as the co-CEO of Queen Consolidated I expect the two million dollars to be returned to the company as soon as possible.”

 

He walked back towards the room, feeling a mixture of anger and sadness. 

  
  


 

* * *

 

 

 

“Do I’ve to be a princess?”

 

“You can be anything you like.”

 

“Can I be a princess with guns?”

 

“Guns? I’m not sure about guns, baby girl.”

 

Elizabeth pouted. “Mark has guns,” she explained.

 

“Ah, then perhaps you can be a Warrior Princess?”

 

She looked so stunned at the new moniker that Felicity giggled. 

 

Elizabeth was holding her hand with complete and utter trust. It was simultaneously the best and the worst thing that had ever happened to Felicity. Her daughter’s innocent trust had the power to hurt her in her soul.

 

“But no guns, okay?”

 

“No! I’m a warrior, I need guns!”

 

Elizabeth was getting riled up quickly. Apparently, it was way past her afternoon nap and she had already been through so much this morning. It wouldn’t surprise Felicity if she crashed sooner than later.

 

Oliver entered the room with a smile on his pretty lips. It would have been a nice smile except it did not reach his eyes. His talk with Moira must have gone worse than he had expected.

 

“What are you girls talking about?”

 

“Well, Mark has weapons but he thinks that girls should only be princesses. Elizabeth thought she could be a warrior princess to prove him wrong, you know?”

 

“Merida is a warrior princess,” Oliver pointed. For once, Felicity’s pop culture knowledge had failed her. How could she have forgotten the Disney Scottish princess and her horse, Angus?  “Remember when we watched Brave? Merida had red hair and she used a bow and arrow.”

 

“Does it have to be an arrow?” Felicity interjected. “I hate arrows. All pointy things actually.”

 

“Yes,” Elizabeth countered, throwing her a stubborn glance which reminded her of Oliver. When Felicity sighed and gave in at the idea of a princess with a bow and arrow, she pumped her little fist in the air, happy that she had won.

 

“Come on, monkey.” He picked their daughter up and she placed her head on his shoulder rubbing her eyes. “Dr Schwartz brought back the results and said we can go home.”

 

Felicity wanted so badly to hear about his discussion with Moira that she was practically vibrating as she followed them out. She had to remind herself that he was tired and that he had spent all day at QC and in the hospital putting out fires left and right. It was not the right place or time to talk about the two million dollars and his mother.

 

“Felicity?” he called so abruptly that she nearly collided with his broad back. Elizabeth was almost asleep, lulled by her father’s caresses.

 

“Yes?”

 

“Would you like to go to the Starling General charity ball with me?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Moira is not Oliver's favorite person right now but I promise that there are reasons behind her actions. As far as I am concerned, she is an extremely complicated character and I'm going to honor that in this fic.
> 
> Anyway, I should probably get back to planning my two-week trip because the faster I finish ironing out the details the faster I can post an update for you guys. The next chapter will be up by Wednesday at the latest.
> 
> P.S. Your support is what gives me strength to write. When I posted the first chapter, I never expected the amount of love that this story would receive. Thank you!


	6. News

Guys,

 

I'm so sorry if you received a notification that I posted a new chapter. Evidently, I have not.

I'm in Greece at the moment, staying with relatives for the rest of the summer. I don't know if you've heard about it on your local news but at least 76 people have died in a hellish fire around Athens. Many more are severely injured, some of them children. I'll spare you the rest of the details because they are horrifying. We are trying to help anyway we can. This is a difficult time and I cannot find the will to edit and post the latest chapter although I have already written it.

The good news is that everyone I know and love is safe. And what is more, I plan on posting real soon, probably by the end of the week. If Oliver, Felicity and Elizabeth can't make me feel better, no one can. Plus, all of you have been amazing so far and your love for this story is the reason I keep writing.

Thank you for your patience!

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading!


End file.
